Hope
by Blood on a Rose
Summary: Alice was looking for him before he himself had even laid eyes on her. What events led Jasper to the diner that day, and what made him go with the strange creature he met? *Canon, Pre-Twilight, Oneshot.


**Thanks to Angeliss, for the beta job**

**DISCLAIMER:** _I do not own any part of the Twilight universe, including characters, scenes, or dialogue written by Stephenie Meyer._

I ran from the city as fast as I could, and yet it still wasn't fast enough. The thirst had nearly overtaken me, but something changed inside of me, my thoughts caught up with my instincts at the last possible moment, and I abstained from the temptation. I followed a man in a suit to his house, planning to pull him into the dense trees on one side, but as he started to walk up his driveway, a young child came out of the house like a bullet and ran straight into the legs of the man.

"Daddy, daddy! You won't believe what I saw today!"

Perched on a tree limb, I could clearly hear and see everything, including the woman who stood on the tiny porch, a hand resting on her stomach which was swollen with another human child. The happiness, contentment, emanating from all of them was enough to make me sick. Even with Maria I had never felt the emotions that stemmed from these three people simply being together, and I coveted the sense of wholeness, of being complete. I had immortality, power, but the one thing I wanted most was out of my reach: love. What did it all amount to, when I had no one to share it with? No one to live the rest of my pathetic life with; no one to give my life for…

I would have to slaughter them all if I was to satiate my thirst, and I would not, _could_ not, live with that for the rest of my unbelievably long life. The scent of the small family's blood taunted me, and I silently jumped from the tree branch, my legs working to take me away from temptation as soon as my feet touched the ground. The other part of me could never take control again, I wouldn't let it. I would _not_ be a monster, a vile, worthless creature.

I wasn't sure where I was going, but I didn't care; all that mattered was getting as far away from humans as possible. Aimless wandering was better than being anywhere near the scent of their blood.

Leaving Peter and Charlotte only gave me a brief respite from my depression, but the pity that always trickled from them as they looked at me only worsened my condition, and I always knew that I would have to depart from them at some point. They couldn't understand the constant inner turmoil I felt, and they probably never would. They didn't feel the same aversion to feeding from humans as I did, possibly because they couldn't feel the myriad of emotions that I always felt when feeding: surprise, confusion, and then the sheer terror and keen pain when I bit into the unsuspecting victim's flesh. I was also weary from the struggle of abstaining from humans when Peter and Charlotte didn't; although the only alternative I had was to virtually starve myself until the hunger became unbearable. The decision to leave my only allies was difficult, but it was harder to be with them than it was to be without them.

I ran for a long time, possibly days, maybe weeks, driven only by my self-loathing. The loneliness grew inside of me, settling around my dormant heart, and I had barely passed a sign that read 'Philadelphia' when it started to rain. Dark clouds loomed overhead, mirroring my mood, and I slowed my pace when I spotted a town ahead. Thunder crashed, and the sky was lit in regular intervals as people sought shelter in nearby stores and houses.

I hesitated, unsure of where to go as it was the middle of the day and I would normally be seeking an uncivilized area while I waited for the sun to set; but, with the storm casting darkness on the town, I would be safe for a while. Standing in the rain would start to attract unwanted attention, and I spotted a diner close by that I could wait out the storm in.

My eyes were dark enough that no one would notice them if they gave me more than a cursory glance, but that meant I was thirsty, and it worried me that I was purposefully putting myself in close proximity to the warm-blooded creatures.

Warm air blew past me as I opened the door, and that was when I smelled her. I felt no hostility coming from her, but I tensed as she jumped down from the high stool at the counter and deliberately approached me. Her emotions confused me by being the complete opposite of everything I had ever felt from another vampire. Usually I felt anger, disdain, and, occasionally, curiosity; I had even felt lust a time or two. But the happiness, joy, and overall sense of wellbeing, combined with her contentedness, engulfed me in a dizzying spiral of emotions. And then there was something I couldn't quite place…it almost seemed like relief, but that would be absurd for her to be relieved because she met me.

While I was still sorting through her emotions, I noted the scent of her: sweet, ardent, excited, but with a hint of serenity, of a tranquil life. It filled my senses, clearing my head of all thought and filling it with unadulterated bliss for a short moment. My mind cleared, and I was even more confounded than before. Who was this vampire, this enigma that suddenly appeared in front of me like a heaven-sent angel?

The humans in the establishment continued with their tasks, blissfully ignorant of the danger surrounding them. I wasn't sure if she would attack me in front of these humans, and I prepared to defend myself if it came to it. But she had a smile on her face as she walked, and, as she came nearer, I realized how small she was. Surely her fighting ability would be hindered by her size—even if she was raised to be a warrior, like I had been. But I couldn't be fooled by her appearance. She could easily have a much more potent power than mine, and be able to crush me without a second thought.

Her eyes were a color I had never seen before on a human or vampire, holding knowledge so deep it almost hurt to look at. She was ethereal, delicate, feminine, elegant, lovely, pleasant, charming, her pale skin glimmering in the glow of the lights, and her short, spiky black hair only added to the illusion that she was something other than human, which of course she was. Yet, I could sense no feelings of ill-will coming from her—on the contrary, she still seemed to be exuding innocent curiosity, untainted by the bitterness of war, or fighting. Her very presence intrigued me, and she had a warm smile on her perfect lips.

"You've kept me waiting a long time," she said, startling me with her pleasant, high-pitched voice.

"I'm sorry, ma'am," I said, ducking my head in apology, my eyes furtively glancing around at the human inhabitants of the diner, who still seemed to suspect nothing. My response startled me, but I realized it was curiosity fueling my actions now, not fear or wariness.

The tiny vampire laughed, her soprano voice a light tinkling, like that of a bell, and I found a small smile coming to my own lips.

"Come," she said, holding a delicate hand out in front of her.

Before I could make any sense of what I was doing, I took her small hand in mine and felt an emotion that had long been dormant, but now filled me to the core: hope. For years I had been looking for something, but I had never been able to find it because I hadn't a clue as to what I was looking for, until now.


End file.
